KLM’s websites use cookies and similar technologies. KLM uses functional cookies to ensure that the websites operate properly and analytic cookies to make your user experience optimal. Third parties place marketing and other cookies on the websites to display personalised advertisements for you. These third parties may monitor your internet behaviour through these cookies. By clicking ‘agree’ next to this or by continuing to use this website, you thereby give consent for the placement of these cookies. If you would like to know more about cookies or adjusting your cookie settings, please read KLM’s cookie policy .

It looks like your browser is out of date.
To use all features of KLM.com safely, we recommend that you update your browser, or that you choose a different one. Continuing with this version may result in parts of the website not being displayed properly, if at all. Also, the security of your personal information is better safeguarded with an updated browser.

The legendary Casa Batlló

If you walk along the Passeig de Gràcia boulevard you can’t miss it: the colourful façade of Casa Batlló. The building’s frontage invites closer inspection. With its playful round windows and scaly roof, it has the aura of a fairytale castle. Its shapes and lines immediately reveal the identity of its creator: Antoni Gaudí, Barcelona’s most celebrated modernistic architect.

The house is named after its former owner, Josep Batlló y Casanovas, a rich textile magnate who commissioned Gaudí to renovate his home in 1904. The architect allowed his imagination to run wild and announced that he would create a paradise on earth. 2 years later, Casa Batlló had an extra floor and that wonderful façade. Significant changes were also made to the interior. There is hardly a straight line to be seen; Gaudí avoided these as much as possible in his designs. And Señor Batlló got exactly what he wanted: a remarkable house.

 Casa Batlló

Barcelona

The dragon on the roof

With a little imagination, it looks like a giant reptile has landed on Casa Batlló’s roof. Gaudí could have been depicting the legend of Saint George and the dragon. The tower with its cross may have represented the sword with which George killed the beast. Whereas the skulls on the façade recall the victims of the murderous dragon. Another explanation is that the exterior symbolises the spirit of carnival. In this interpretation, the roof represents a jester’s hat, the balconies are masks and the mosaic could be confetti.

Casa Batlló’s roof is just one of several noteworthy features along the boulevard. This block on the Passeig de Gràcia is home to several modernistic houses from the same period, including those by architects Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Josep Puig i Cadafalch. Barcelonans joke about the ‘Illa de la Discòrdia’, which loosely translates as ‘The Housing Block with a Twist’ and refers to the competition that existed between architects along this street.


The scaly roof

The interior of Casa Batlló

Casa Batlló has good reason to be described as a legendary building. Anyone who sees its exuberant exterior alone would be hard pressed to recognise it as a residential building. For this reason, the interior is also well worth seeing. Make good use of the long opening hours (from 9:00 to 21:00 with entry permitted until 20:00). Try to arrive at sunset, when the light passing through the shell-shaped skylights creates a mysterious atmosphere. Be sure to visit Señor Batlló’s study and the festejador, a romantic spot by the carved fireplace where lovers can retreat.